Peace with Creation
From 1 September through to 4 October churches observe the Season of Creation, a time for prayer and action to care for the Earth. The Orthodox ecumenical patriarch Dimitrios initiated the season in 1989; the World Council of Churches later joined, and in 2019 Pope Francis included the Catholic church. The season concludes on 4 October, St Francis of Assisi, the saint of poverty, peace, and care for creation. This year the season’s theme is ‘Peace with Creation’, citing Isaiah 32:14-18 which speaks of justice, peace, and the good things of the earth. Scripture often refers to these themes, like Psalm 65:
“You care for the earth, give it water, you fill it with riches./Your river in heaven brims over to provide its grain.
And thus you provide for the earth; you drench its furrows;/you level it, soften it with showers; you bless its growth. …
The hills are girded with joy, the meadows covered with flocks,/the valleys are decked with wheat.
They shout for joy, yes they sing.”
Ten years ago, in Laudato Si’ – the title being one of St Francis’ hymns – Pope Francis wrote not only of wild ecosystems and of the climate crisis, but also of how the earth feeds us and of the need to make and keep our cities livable. In 2023 Pope Francis wrote again about the ecological crisis, referring back to St Francis, and sharing his concern that our responses had not been adequate. He emphasised that solutions require not only personal, family, and community efforts but also change at the political level, nationally and internationally.
We cannot speak of peace and turn away from the wars ravaging our brothers and sisters – in Ukraine, in South Sudan, in Gaza, and elsewhere. Pope Leo has encouraged us to pray the Rosary every day in October for peace. Recently, too, Leo said in his message on care for creation that environmental justice is ‘an urgent need that involves much more than simply protecting the environment. For it is a matter of justice – social, economic and human. For believers it is also a duty born of faith… not an optional or a secondary aspect of our Christian experience’.
One might become pessimistic about the state of the world. But, as ancient and modern prophets have said, it is important to do what is right and not to be discouraged if results do not quickly appear. To quote Leo again, ‘by working with love and perseverance, we can sow many seeds of justice and thus contribute to the growth of peace and the renewal of hope’.
Jim McAloon
